Heretics

Index

In Our Own Words

"It has never been proven that Chaos cultists are anything more than the product of the fevered imaginings of certain of the more zealous Witch Hunters. Why they have to go on and on about 'corruption from within' and 'debased orgiastic sects of the Lord of Pleasure' when the real danger is the Marauders of the north, I'll never know. I ask you, what motivation could these successful merchants, nobles, and scholars have for allying with Chaos, when they already hold positions of such eminence within the Empire? It would be like a queen bee poisoning her own hive."

— Albrecht Kinear, Professor Emeritus at the University of Nuln, speaking at a commission to advise the Elector Count of Nuln on the threat of Chaos

"What man of Miklgardr has ever paid a toll to sail the seas? We are pirates. We are Norscan. We are the wolves of the sea, and everything in the sea is our prey. You are our prey."

— Dalla Ulfarsdottir, Norse Shieldmaiden

"What choice did I have? I would be a loyal son of the Empire yet, had my hand not begun to change. I did nothing to make it occur. I read no proscribed books. I learned no profane rituals. I followed by teachers' instructions to the letter, and still I changed. Could I go to my professors and tell them my plight? Could I ask for mercy at the Temple of Sigmar? No. The only mercy the Empire gives its twisted children is the axe. What could I do? I wanted to live. I did not want my great mind to go to waste merely because one of my limbs had betrayed me."

— Magus Lichtmann, Warlock Engineer

"Is it so wrong to want to be on the winning side? Year by year the Beastmen grow bolder and the Marauders stronger. Year by year there are more Mutants, and worse, within the borders of the Empire. The Emperor is fighting a losing battle. I am a pragmatist first and foremost; the Empire has made me rich, but Chaos will help me to survive when Middenheim is in flames and its people are food for Beastmen or sacrifices to the Blood God. Survive and even prosper. The Master of Fortune is good to those who revere him."

"Horrified at the fate of their companion, the remaining adventurers chastised the daemon, who replied that they should simply be more specific in their wish-making."

— Mishka Levkov, Tomb Robber

"As for the infant, it might grow up more quickly than an ordinary child. Some of them do. Anyway, altering folk is worthwhile for its own sake. You might even say it's a sacrement."

— 'Mama' Solveig Weiss, Healer, Midwife & Heretic

Scholar's View

"There was a time, before your affliction, when you knew quite a bit about everyone in Miragliano. But perhaps the rot has crawled into your brain as well as your hand."

— Brunner the Bounty Hunter

"He who is touched by Chaos, may harm Chaos... but must always beware, lest he become the instrument of Chaos instead of its destroyer."

— Astyanax, Tilean Enchanter

"Kill the corrupted. They're beyond saving. Do it now, or we all die!"

— Jakob Wolff, Warrior-Priest of Sigmar

"This symbol is agony to you. Much more than the burning. For such as you, the very presence of holiness is pain. You deserve nothing less."

— Annika Bohringer, Witch Hunter

"The cults of our blessed Empire often act as frightened vengeful children, squabbling amongst themselves. Yet, we forget that while we fight each other, the forces of Chaos and its minions wait to take us all by surprise."

— Avemar Teinhoff of Carroburg, Celestial Magister of the Celestial Order

"Whatever has put the taint on them, their fate is still the same. Heretics burn."

— Inquisitor Gualtiero Bocca, Solkanite War-priest

"You have tormented me more than you know with your elaborate account of these forces of Chaos which threaten the world in so many different ways, and to which my own brother sold his soul."

"Albrecht Kinear, former Professor of the University of Nuln, this court finds you guilty of trafficking with Daemons amd selling your soul to Chaos. You profaned the high office and renown with which you were entrusted when you joined the Silver Wheel society here in Nuln, and you compounded our damnation when you steeped yourself so thoroughly in its dark and sorcerous teachings as to be made its leader. Your already unforgiveable crimes are made still worse by your continual deliberate misdirection of legitimate authority with your false pronouncements on Chaos and many another matter. Gunther, Hans—take him outside and burn him. Now."

— Vorster Pike, Witch Hunter, speaking at the commission to advise the Elector of Nuln on the threat of ChaosAlbrecht of Nuln, was burned at the stake 1301 IC for pernicious declamation.

"There are gods of wrath and horror, whose domain in growing in the world of men. The cause is terror, for when men see evil in the world, and fear it will claim them, their courage often fails, and they try to placate the force of evil instead of standing against them."

— Orfeo, Bretonnian Minstrel, recounting a warning of the Chaos threat ministered by the Morrian Father Superior of the Border Princedom of Aldium, in the Khyprian empire

"They have raped and pillaged the coasts of the Old World for centuries, putting towns and temples alike to the sword. They are a treacherous people, brother. Daemon-ridden and corrupt. They bathe in foetid pools that glow in night, and make offerings to twisted idols. They venerate the mutant, the beastman and the marauder. They are not worthy of your blood or your sacrifice."

Another lavish tome made its way into my library of lore this weekend. Storm of Magic is the latest Warhammer release, an expansion treating heretics to a mind-bending choice of extraordinarily powerful new magic spells, artefacts, fulcrums, and scrolls permitting the binding of monsters, beasts and magical characters.

Nestled away in the back of this luxurious publication on page 134 is an amphibious sorcerer called a Fimir Balefiend. Until one of the Games Workshop studio developers named Mat Ward co-wrote the latest Warhammer rulebook and the Storm of Magic expansion, the Fimir had managed to keep a low profile for two decades!

Fimir sorcerers, known as Dirach or sometimes as Balefiends, are detailed as spending prolonged periods in the lands beyond the mists. The Fimir are described in Storm of Magic as amphibious humanoid monsters that haunt bogs, fens, and desolate moorlands in the northern and western Old World. The reason that I am recounting these texts is because that area being described is none other than the Wasteland. Marienburg is sited in the Wasteland territory. The city-port is surrounded by treacherous swamplands known as the Cursed Marsh and it is here that the infamous one-eyed daemon-worshipping Fimir lay in hiding. Their strongholds wreathed in thick mist produced through magic means by their sorcerers to shield their craggy fortresses from prying eyes.

The quality of the Storm of Magic hardback publication easily justifies the price tag. It has been masterfully produced with a magnetic front cover and spinning dial representing the Eight Winds of Magic, reminding me of the party game 'Twister!'

One of the players in my campaign set in Marienburg is using a Cult of the Possessed gang. We don't have the original Mordheim miniatures available but I do have a selection of suitable Citadel miniatures we can use; Fimir warriors from the Heroquest game plus a couple of the metal miniatures released during the late 80's.

The reasons for Fimir being the perfect choice to represent a Possessed warband is not obvious. Anyone who us unfamiliar with the Warhammer background concerning Fimir will mistake them for Beasts of Chaos. This the 'Common View'. Fimir are not beastmen, beastmen are not amphibious! Fimir are described as a dwindling and reclusive race. Beastmen are widespread, plaguing the Old World and beyond. Comparing the two is worse than comparing Elves to Men. They are like chalk and cheese.

Common views concerning Fimir are judged by their appearance rather than their lore. Fimir appear bestial and primal, who occasionally raid to take captives and steal food. Some or all of these behaviours are demonstrated by men, orcs, ogres, gors, chaos dwarfs and werecreatures to mention a few.

Fimir society and their gruesome habits are historically described in a couple of the 1st edition Warhammer Roleply sourcebooks in addition to classic Warhammer rulebooks and the original Warhammer Armies publication. It's gripping stuff! The less detail concerning some of their less than salubrious activities the better. In this day and age it is sufficient to say that such creatures grim objective is to destabilise the barrier between the mortal world and the Realm of Chaos, to regain favour with the Chaos Gods.

There is a matriarchal aspect to the bog dwellers social structure to mention. Amongst the Balefiends, the Dirach sorcerers are historically subservient to the Meargh females. The lore is indicative that powerful spellcasters amongst Fimir are their leaders.

Campaign material concerning 'possessed' Fimir warriors is included in the RPG book 'Dying of the Light'. An excellent sourcebook set mostly around the Wasteland, with parts being set within Marienburg itself! These characters with a daemon bound to their physical form by a magister either wind up behaving (and appearing physically) like Possessed, Dark Souls or Mutants. Warriors too weak to survive daemonic possession typically end up dead or worse. The scenario 'Burn Them!' was scribed by none other than Black Library author Sandy Mitchell as pictured on this blog!

Like the druchii, beastmen and human followers of Chaos, the Fimir entreat with daemons, carrying out morbid practices of dark magic and human sacrifice. They would use Chaos rituals and more than a little of daemon lore. The weapons list of both CotP and Beastmen warbands are similar. Theres are no centauroid mutants mentioned specifically relating to the one-eyed marsh phantoms. The characteristics for 'Beastmen' in CotP warbands as opposed to traditional Gors are very different (much to Christian Templin's dismay). Warriors with '2 Wounds' compare favourably with the elite Fimm described in the lore.

After scratching around for enough proof through research, in my scholar's view, I find the evidence all very compelling. While I wouldn't dare loremasters of renown to argue against my reasoning, I don't see much rationale that indicates a dedicated warband list is necessary for Fimir. Especially when you consider the low profile that their mysterious kind has maintained for hundreds of years, their covert behaviour bears comparison to the actions of a Chaos cult.

The next time the Balefiend's cyclopean eye turns its attention on the ebb and flow of the Winds of Magic it might realise that magical power is available just beyond the city wall of Marienburg.